Containerboard production drops 6 percent in May

U.S. containerboard production decreased 6 percent in May 2019 compared to May 2018 and was down 4.5 percent year-to-date, the American Forest & Paper Association (AF&PA) announced today.

The average daily production compared to April 2019 was 0.9 percent higher, AF&PA said.

May’s containerboard operating rate increased slightly from 91.5 percent in April to 91.9 percent as the total linerboard rate rose above 90 percent for the first time since January. In spite of the bounce back in the last couple of months, the May operating rate was 6.7 points lower than the same month last year and the year-to-date operating rate was down six points compared to last year.

Production for export, most of which is liner, was down nearly 18 percent year-over-year and nearly 20 percent year-to-date.